Stratosphere Creative

The world looks very different from 70,000 feet up. Not only can you see where you came from, but where you'd like to go. And sometimes, places you never knew you could be.

We are a proven team of award winning problem solvers -- design-related branding problems to be exact. While our work has been heralded by the top forums in our industry (Communication Arts, Print and Graphis Magazines, twice honored in international Flash Film Festivals, multiple Adobe honors, among others), the standard by which we judge all of our assignments is the highest honor of all: Results.

We start with the desired results and work backwards. What do we need to know about the audience to get said results? What facts about the competitive landscape could aid or hinder such results? This knowledge can reveal surprising opportunities to connect with people and compel them to act, whether the action is to buy a product, service or stand up for what they believe in.

Just as things look differently at 70,000 feet, they look really interesting from 1 foot away. The following core team bios go beyond professional curriculum vitae to the crazy. But, it's all apart of what makes us good at what we do.
Gus Granger

Principal & Creative Director

An US Air Force officer and art teacher move to midwest in the 70s to raise a family. Add the influence of years of Prince, early mentoring in drawing and photography, "Minnesota Nice", football, playing bass in a Metallica/Guns N Roses cover band, chess club, varsity track and field, roof riding, Savannah College of Art and Design, Drake University, amazing design agencies (Rapp Collins, DDB Needham, Group Baronet and VSA Partners), and you arrive here: Stratosphere Creative.

Gus is Stratosphere Creative's founding principal and oversees creative and branding. The start of Stratosphere Creative in the mid-2000s represented the fulfillment of a long-held career aspiration. From early on, it was always his plan to open an agency.

Gus has always championed pushing Integrated Marketing and Communications (IMC) from buzzword to reality, seeking a deep understanding of each client's business, audience and competition, prior to beginning the creative process. It's this approach which brought about the agency's name and philosophy-starting each project from far above, understanding the landscape, it's obstacles and opportunities, then moving to developing solutions.

His work has been recognized by a number of publications and organizations, including Adobe (formerly Macromedia), Architectural Digest, Communication Arts, The Dallas Society of Visual Communications, Graphis, as well as both the London and New York Flash Film Festival
Jack Williams

Director of Web Development and SEO / SEM Strategy

Forget about premium, unleaded and diesel gas, Monster fuels the search and web engine that is Jack Williams. This Gulf War vet is full of surprises. He's father to seven kids including two sets of twins, cooks as a hobby and can hold his own in a discussion about today's top hip-hop artists.

In addition to being a veteran developer, he brings Stratosphere an in-house search engine optimization and marketing mastery to the core team. Prior to joining Stratosphere, Williams was Development Manager at Nextstar Broadcasting in Irving--one of the nation's top 20 television broadcasting companies. In previous roles, Jack was deeply entrenched in multimedia and internet advertising.

His core training and education were received during his service with the United States Navy 1988--1994. For his service, he received a number of commendations.
Elda Marroquin

Designer

Elda sees art in everything including street graffiti and gig posters. She took up origami to bring a logo sketch to life and believes you can always use another sketch book. Eighties-born baby that she is, some office banter escapes her but she redeems herself through a healthy respect for Monty Python. And, by the way, the soundtrack to some of her best work is Law & Order SVU episodes which play in her ear when she's on deadline.

Elda has five years of multi-faceted design experience. She specializes in print and interactive design and is a key player in the creative strength of the firm. She is a leader in the local creative community, serving on the board of the Dallas Chapter of the AIGA(American Institute of Graphic Arts). Prior to joining Stratosphere Creative, she designed for the Public Trust Gallery and Ecolab. She is a graduate of the University of North Texas at Denton with a B.F.A. in communication design.
Alvin Pollard

Director of Accounts

Not since Telly Savalas has a man so brazenly enjoyed lollipops in public. Beyond a love of candy, Alvin's real passion is football. His hobby is football trivia, he daydreams about coaching in the NFL and remembers fondly his days a high school football team captain.

An ideal day for Alvin would be a Thanksgiving fueled by coffee, watching a bowl game, eating seafood gumbo and spending time with his three teenaged boys.

Alvin brings 20 years of account and project management experience in advertising and design agency settings including Tribal DDB and Young & Rubicam. For Stratosphere, Alvin oversees client service, account management and work-flow efficiency.
Cynthia Hunter

Traffic Manager

The agency's work flow ninja is both kind and firm. That is evident in the things Cynthia loves most. Her prize possession is her late father's gold band and she's been known to indulge in chocolate and snacks with a vengeance. It's worth mentioning that there may be a connection between Cynthia's fervent daily prayer routine and her interest in "experimental" cooking.

Cynthia is Stratosphere Creative's answer to air traffic control in that she is the agency's traffic/work flow manager. She has been a traffic manager for advertising, design, marketing and public relations agencies throughout her tenure. While Cynthia's role is not client facing, it is all about client satisfaction in that she shepherds account jobs through the internal agency system, sets project time lines, deadlines and allocates resources. Before joining Stratosphere, Cynthia was a key player on the Lopez Negrete Communications traffic team.